Associated Content And FTC Guidelines

Date: Nov 21, 2009 Category: Associated Content

A handful of us participated in AC’s 2nd ever Legal Happy Hour with Darnell and Craig (Associated Content’s Legal Counsel). The hour long discussion covered Associated Content’s move to follow the FTC’s guidelines on paid reviews, testimonials and endorsements. If you are not familiar with these guidelines, the FTC wants to crackdown on paid bloggers and freelancers who get paid to write product reviews. It will also cover samples, free products and any other exchange where a writer basically profits from the review. The guidelines are necessary because some writers will flat out lie and endorse a product for a fee. The FTC will protect consumers from misleading reviews and blatant advertising. The blogger/freelance writer guidelines take effect on December 1, 2009.

Associated Content Contributors who review products/services fall into the category of writers who will be monitored for misleading activities. To protect yourself, you will need to disclose in your review if you have received the item from a company or if you have a material connection to this company/brand. To make things easier, Associated Content is implementing a disclosure badge into the publishing template. Darnell gave us a preview/screenshot but admitted that the final version will be slightly different.

I am not a legal counsel but I’ve done my fair research on the FTC guidelines. My research was required because I occasionally publish reviews on Associated Content and I get paid to blog about products. The guidelines sound scary, but they are really easy to follow. To be compliant all you have to do is provide an honest disclosure.

Associated Content’s legal guy was not concerned about items that we buy and decide to review on our own. The guidelines right now require a disclosure only for sponsored reviews, but these rules could quickly change. I see both the FTC and publishing companies adjusting and re-writing things next year as we all get used to the changes.

I plan to disclose even if a sample was sent to me by a company, I got a sample at a store or an item was purchased by me. I would advise you to do the same. It is better to err on the side of caution and disclose if you purchased the item.

A disclosure can come in a form of two sentences in the first paragraph of your review article;

“I have not been paid to review this product and have no material connection to the company or brand. All opinions of this review are 100% mine.”

Some of us have a lot more question for AC and Craig, but to be honest none of us know how far the FTC will go. I have questions about receipts and keeping documentation of where items came from. I’m also questioning personal vs professional experience reviews. Can an article really be called a review if you have never held the product in your hand?

Paid product reviews are a big business. Some bloggers make a living reviewing free products or getting paid to advertise for companies. I think we need more honesty than guidelines from writers. Disclosures are good and give a little bit of transparency to our readers. Your review can still be objective, fair and without misleading information.

To learn more about Associated Content and their FTC compliance, please read the entire Legal Happy Hour with AC Craig forum thread.

You can get familiar with the new guidelines and why disclosures are necessary by reading FTC Publishes Final Guides Governing Endorsements, Testimonials.

Associated Content will change their submission guidelines and FAQ soon, but you can read more about their move for compliance at AC’s Official Blog.

Associated Content Contributors will not need to alter their old reviews or articles. This is only for reviews and articles that will be published on or after December 1, 2009.

No Comments »

No comments yet.

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL

Writerista.com – blog of a freelance writer, mother and artist

Associated Content And FTC Guidelines

Related Posts You Should Read

No Comments »

Leave a comment